Chapter 47：Hope for the Hopeless

Despite the bright light emitted by the sun's rays entering into the throne room that gave it a sort of magnificent and glorious presentation, everyone was aware that this pristine looking hall was nothing more than superficial makeup.

Makeup that only existed to hide the dread and despair that has claimed this kingdom for the past few months.

And no one was more aware of this than Stefan Heinen Naftes IV.

Or as he was more commonly known as: The King of Porrand. He was supposed to be the proud and prideful monarch who represented the Great Kingdom of Porrand.

But at that moment in time, when you looked at him, all you could see was a hopeless King.

A hopeless King who ruled a doomed kingdom.

At this moment, due to the perilousness of the situation, there was literally no one who had the spare time to accompany Stefan in the throne room.

As such, Stefan could only sit alone on his throne in the quiet hallway as he simply stared out into the open space in front of him, contemplating what was to come.

What was the cause of his kingdoms distress?

The answer was actually rather simple.

It was a single nation.

Or, more precisely, it was an empire.

An empire which didn't even take 'empire' as its official name.

The Imperium of Drussia.

An enigma that took the world by storm.

And is currently on a course to conquer Porrand.

Soon, the silence of the throne room was broken as a knight barged into the room. The knight was dressed in silver armour that had golden outlines, which was complemented by a dark red under-tunic. He was not just any ordinary knight, he was a royal knight. A knight who belonged to an order that swore allegiance and fealty to the throne alone.

After the knight knelt on one knee before Stefan to show his respect for the monarch, he rose and gave his report.

"Your majesty, we have received more news from our spies..."

The royal knight gave his report with a stern face as he spoke.

"The Emperor of the Imperium of Drussia, Maxwell himself, was spotted crossing into our border. Judging from the information, the reason why the initial Drussian forces held their ground instead of advancing was because..."

"They were waiting for their emperor?"

The royal knight could only nod silently in response to his king's question. However, this answer only served to confuse Stefan even more.

"But that... doesn't make any sense."

At this point in time, all Stefan could do was speculate on the true nature of the invader's plans.

"If their plan was to have their emperor participate and spearhead their invasion, then why didn't they gather their forces in their own borders first? That way, they would have been able to gain a quick upper hand as well as the element of surprise when they actually declared war... It's almost as if..."

However, the more that Stefan thought about it, the more he felt the pieces clicking together, the puzzle being solved.

"They started the war prematurely on purpose..."

Soon, Stefan's confusion was replaced with anger as he quickly realised the Imperium's intentions.

"Those damn bastards! They really look down on us that much?"

"What is it your majesty? What did you realise?"

Stefan couldn't stop the look of disdain from forming on his face as he revealed his discoveries to the royal knight.

"They invaded prematurely... so that they could alert us of their intentions as early as possible..."

"Wait what? Why would they do such a thing?"

To Stefan's annoyance, it seemed that the royal knight, someone who was meant to be at least somewhat competent, had yet to catch on to the Imperium's plans. Nevertheless, he still started to slowly explain it to the knight.

"Think about it. What was our first response when the news of the invasion reached the capital?"

"We immediately started to gather our forces in order to combat this foreign threat."

Although the knight was able to answer Stefan's obvious guiding question, he still seemed to be confused about the actual nature of the situation.

"But I don't see why the Drussians would want us to do such a thi-"

"It's because they plan to destroy us in one fell swoop!"

Stefan couldn't help raising his voice in the face of such a situation.

"They're not going to strike our armies while they are separated or even while we are still preparing! No... They are waiting for us to build up our forces and strike at them first."

As Stefan continued to explain the Imperium's intentions, he felt the warm watery feeling of blood dripping from his clenched fists.

"They want to show off their military might... it's unbelievably arrogant but this is the 'Imperium' we are talking about here. Ever since the total annihilation of the Panish Expeditionary Force, it felt as if something was off about the Drussians."

As Stefan continued to speak, he noticed a mixed look of both understanding and despair beginning to form on the royal knight's face.

"Not to mention that ridiculous name... 'Imperium of Drussia.' I can't think of a more self-righteous and narcissistic name than that... but the results of their battles... we can't really deny the results."

Despite the signs of a pleasant day, such as the bright sun and the chirping birds, to Stefan, it felt as if the day was growing darker with each and every passing moment.

"That and the fact that it's already been established for two years without making any military movements. If the rumours were correct, then it only took roughly less than a year for the Dunnwals, the current head of the Imperium, to build up their first army."

Stefan paused for a short moment to let what he had just said sink in before continuing.

"And apparently... it took even less time than that for them to humiliate the Paniards and devastate the Ostrians... Feats like that... that is not the work of someone who's human. Achievements like that... can only be accomplished by selling your soul to the devil... no…"

At this point, Stefan was sure that he sounded at least partially insane. However, he no longer cared. These were the feelings that had been building up within his heart for the past few months.

And now that the floodgates were opened, there was nothing anyone could possibly do to stop them from pouring out.

"Feats like that can only be accomplished if you are the devil. What kind of normal person can cultivate a revolutionary army, command that army exceptionally and also form an alliance with a detestable nation like the Unified Kingdoms, all while still being just becoming an adult?"

Hearing Stefan ramble on, another look began to form on the royal knight's face. Before it was a mix of despair and understanding. Now a look of concern was also present.

"There is no denying it... The head of the Imperium... the one who started it all... the one leading the invasion into our very homeland... He is undoubtedly the devil. Or at the very least... he's not someone of this world. I can't possibly think of or believe any other explanation."

In the end, Stefan could only turn to superstition to rationalise the inconceivable being that was the emperor of the Imperium of Drussia: Maxwell Von Glanus Dunnwal.

Once Stefan finished his short rant, the room was quickly filled with silence once more as both men stared at the floor with melancholic looks on their faces.

After the moment of silence lingered on for a few moments, the royal knight attempted to salvage the situation.

"Then why don't we call for aid? Surely there must be other nations tha-"

"Who could we possibly call upon that we are sure will definitely come to our aid?!"

However, the knight's attempt was all for naught as he was quickly interrupted by Stefan.

"The Paniards? They're too busy dealing with Breetish naval harassment to be of any help to us now. The Fench surely aren't, at least not with the constant threat of combined Breetish and Drussian retribution... And don't even bother mentioning the Ostrians or Lethaunians."

Stefan let out a sombre sigh before he continued.

"We are alone in this fight."

Despite knowing all this, the knight still attempted to suggest possible solutions.

"If that is really the case then perhaps we should sue for peace... at least until we can determine the true capabilities of the Imperium."

"Denied."

Stefan's curt reply only emphasised the hopelessness that was present within his heart.

Sue for peace? What kind of solution was that?

There was no doubt that the Imperium would deny their attempts for peace, and if they did accept, it would probably end in a way that was biased and favourable for the Drussians.

Soon, the knight questioned Stefan's answer.

"We really must fight?"

The only response the royal knight received was a silent nod of his monarch's head.

"Then... I believe our chances of victory may be larger than what you may think."

To Stefan's surprise, a sudden spark of hope began to kindle within his heart as the knight explained himself.

"Based on the information we were able to derive from Drussian battles, the Drussians are heavily reliant on their ranged firepower. In particular, their astounding reload speed and their innovative artillery."

The more Stefan listened to the knight, the more he realised just how pathetic he had actually been. A king who gave in to despair before the battle has even begun? Stefan couldn't think of anything more shameful.

"As such, all we need to do is close that distance with an overwhelming cavalry force. Even with their 'square formation,' we can still threaten the entire Drussian army through complete and total numerical superiority."

As the knight spoke, Stefan felt a sort of glorious aura emanating from his royal knight. It was as if he was an angel sent from God to give Stefan a holy revelation. The revelation he needed to defeat the devil.

"On their side, we were able to count around 15,000-20,000 infantry men with around 8000 cavalrymen and roughly 100-200 artillery pieces. On our side, we have over 40,000 lancers, cossacks and winged hussars. However, we still able to muster thousands more cavalry."

The knight's voice was full of confidence as he spoke."

"With the correct commands, overrunning the Drussian position should be no problem."

When the knight finished speaking, Stefan could only lament and scold himself for his own short-sightedness and lack of hope.

"You're... right... How could I... let despair get the hold of me... I apologise... I don't kno-"

"Please don't say that your majesty."

The knight quickly interrupted Stefan in a calm and serious tone.

"I would have no one else as my king... but you."

With his confidence rebuilt, Stefan rose from his throne to give his proclamation.

"I promise you! We will defeat the Drussians! We will make the Imperium regret its mistakes! We will drive them out of our homeland!"

...

"If my predictions are correct then something along the lines of that should be what the Porrish are most likely to thinking."

Erika glanced around the silent command tent as she concluded her presentation. Although, this silence wasn't meant to last.

Soon, the casual voice of Maxwell quickly chimed in as he made his sarcastic remark.

"How pitiable... In the face of overwhelming odds, they would place their hopes in their old and... outdated tactics... Although I do admit that their hope really is endearing..."

A sort of malicious glint appeared appeared in Maxwell's snake-like eyes while his joking and nonchalant nature permeated the air as he spoke.

"It would be a real shame if someone were to... crush it completely."